News

Prejudice is a net that ensnares not only those who suffer from severe psychiatric illness, but also many of us who care for individuals with bipolar and other disorders.

In last month’s column, I discussed how 19th century psychiatrists began recognizing the possibility that a mental disorder might affect only one facet of an individual’s personality (volition), leaving others relatively untouched.

It is important for the inpatient psychiatrist to understand the perspective of the newly admitted patient. Many patients will find the experience depersonalizing, threatening, and socially alienating and may perceive it as a personal failure.

In our current age of increasingly biological psychiatry, psychiatrists seem to be paying less and less attention to the humanities, even as internists and surgeons are paying more attention.

Like any writer, I am driven to see my articles in print. I want to see my words enshrined on pages whose worthiness is measured-indisputably-by such standards as “peer review” and “editorial selection.”

A website for your practice can increase your patient base and decrease advertising costs, but it does require planning and an initial investment.

Did you focus on CME? Inpatient psychiatry? Medication updates? Tell us-we'd like to know.

Down through the decades, psychotherapy and psychoanalysis have been portrayed in many Hollywood films and in television sitcoms but not with the suggestion that they are dangerous methods.

A treatment model for soldiers returning from Iraq, Afghanistan, and other areas of conflict, “RESPECT-Mil” reaches out to soldiers affected by anxiety, PTSD, and depression.

New data show that patients with unipolar, non-psychotic major depressive disorder (MDD) receiving transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) achieved significant improvements in both depression symptoms and in quality of life measurements.

Few circumstances confront the psychiatrist with more complex, painful, and potentially problematic clinical dilemmas and challenges than the treatment of the incest victim. Here are some factors that may lead to memory of a trauma becoming inaccessible or withheld by a patient.

Despite its occurrence in up to 3.4% of adults, hair–pulling disorder or trichotillomania (TTM) is often under-diagnosed and inappropriately treated, according to a panel of experts presenting at the recent APA meeting.

Amid all the Super Bowl-esque hoopla of this year’s annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association was the final round of a national competition among residency programs to demonstrate superior psychiatric knowledge. The several month competition, MindGames, pitted program against program on timed multiple choice exams on a diverse range of psychiatric topics, including theory, psychopharmacology, psychotherapy, geriatrics, addictions, and forensics.

The prevalence of professional burnout ranges from 25% to 60% among practicing physicians. No wonder then, that the workshop on physician burnout was packed at the APA annual meeting.

While regulatory controls on methadone clinics for opioid dependence resulted in treatment being physically and functionally isolated from conventional medical care, the delivery of an office-based treatment of buprenorphine and the buprenorphine/naloxone combination product over the last decade has facilitated the return of treatment to “mainstream medicine both for psychiatry and primary care."

Another day-glow orange morning . . . of jack-hammering men in the street, . . .their steam-shovel coughing black fumes

The Suicide Risk Screening Alert is a clinical tool that assists the psychiatrist and nonpsychiatric physician in identifying patients at risk for suicide during brief medication management appointments.

With the fast growth of knowledge, the challenge to keep up with the ever-growing body of information is greater than ever.

Funding for mental health services has never achieved top legislative priority, and reforms requiring parity succeeded only after years of hard-fought battles.

Ongoing shortages of several psychotropic medications have wreaked havoc among patients and their families, caused frustration and reluctant prescription switches among physicians, and prompted investigations by Congress.

BPD appears to be a neurodevelopmental disorder, influenced by the person’s genetics and brain development and shaped by early environment, including attachment and traumatic experiences.

ADHD has been significantly associated with a primary diagnosis of impulse control disorder and bipolar disorder and most commonly associated with social phobia and major depressive disorder. Details here. . .

Sleep disorders - most commonly sleep apnea - are often comorbid with psychiatric disorders. Treatment of disordered sleep can result in a significant improvement in the psychiatric disorder.

Preliminary research indicates that use of online social networking sites, such as Facebook, by adolescents who are receiving treatment for substance use disorders can negatively affect their care

Psychotherapists have fiduciary power and-from a risk management perspective-the clinician must act in a manner in which misconduct cannot be inferred. In terms of boundary violations, some preventative measures (like psychodynamic education) can be taken.

For the first time in its history, DSM-5 has shown some flexibility and capacity to correct itself. Hopefully, this is just the beginning of what will turn out to be a number of other necessary DSM-5 retreats.

The APA has invited public comment on the proposed criteria for the upcoming DSM-5 for the third and final time. From May 2 until June 15, public responses will be considered by the DSM-5 Work Groups.

National Institute of Mental HealthThe mission of NIMH is to transform the understanding and treatment of mental illnesses through basic and clinical research, paving the way for prevention, recovery, and cure.

Xavier Amador, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and an internationally sought-after speaker. Dr. Amador has over 25 years of experience working with adults, families, and couples. In addition to continuing to his private practice in New York City, Dr. Amador is the Founder and Director of the LEAP Institute. LEAP is for therapists, family members, law enforcement officers, and anyone seeking to break through an impasse with someone who is convinced they are right and you are wrong. He and the faculty at LEAP conduct regional seminars for couples and other groups.